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The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
In 1995, a celebrity cast performed songs from the MGM film The Wizard of Oz at the Lincoln Center as a benefit for the Children's Defense Fund. This is the soundtrack from that performance. The production consists of an abbreviated script and highlights most songs and musical numbers from the movie. The most notable difference is Uncle Henry and the three farmhands do not appear in this production, but Joel Grey in his role of Professor Marvel and Debra Winger's "Cyclone" narration both mention Miss Gulch. The concert begins with Jewel as Dorothy Gale singing the complete version of "Over the Rainbow". The concert also includes the song "The Jitterbug" which was cut from the original film. Throughout the entire concert, the conductor and orchestra are featured on-stage with the performers. The performers are predominantly positioned at music stands reading the script and music (similar to reader's theatre). The choreography is different from the 1939 movie: noticeable differences include the Munchkins not dancing and at no point do the four principals (Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion) dance together. Throughout the production, various photos of “Wizard of Oz” artwork such as a tornado striking the Kansas farm, the Yellow Brick Road, and Emerald City are projected on a screen in the back of the stage. The tempi for various songs were changed to better feature specific talents of individual singers, including "If I Only Had a Brain", which had a folk music tempo to highlight Jackson Browne and "If I Only Had a Heart", which had a rock and roll tempo to highlight the beautiful Roger Daltrey (Daltrey even swings his microphone, mimicking his Who persona). Nathan Lane's portrayal of the Lion included a version of "If I Were King of the Forest" where he adds in addition to the lyrics "not, queen, not duke, not prince...or the Artist Formerly Known as Prince". This production shortens the Wicked Witch's Castle scenes due to time limit. In the scene where Dorothy (Jewel) suffers her imprisonment after Aunt Em's image fades away in the crystal ball, Winger says the line "What a little whiner! I'll give you something to cry about" which was not spoken by Margaret Hamilton. The Wicked Witch's meltdown scene is followed by the musical number "Hail! Hail! The Witch is Dead" which was also cut from the original film. Phoebe Snow added a stirring "If I Only Had..." medley set to a solo piano, combining all three of the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion's desires. Unlike Jack Haley, Daltrey as the Tin Man hugged Joel Grey as the Wizard toward the end with a sweet "Thank you from the bottom of my heart!". The performance was originally broadcast November 22 on both TNT and TBS, and issued on CD and VHS video in 1996. The video has not yet been released on DVD. Both the CD and video are currently out-of-print. Track List # Main Title - Orchestra # Over The Rainbow - Jewel # Cyclone - Debra Winger # Come Out, Come Out - Natalie Cole & Boys Choir Of Harlem # It Really Was No Miracle - Jewel/Boys Choir Choir Of Harlem # We Thank You Very Sweetly - Boys Choir Of Harlem # Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead - Natalie Cole & Boys Choir Of Harlem # As Mayor Of The Munchkin City - Daniel Lane # As Coroner, I Must Aver - Kevin Miller # Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead - Natalie Cole/Boys Choir Of Harlem # The Lullaby League - Boys Choir Of Harlem # The Lollipop Guild - Boys Choir Of Harlem # We Welcome You To Munchkinland - Boys Choir Of Harlem # Who Killed My Sister - Debra Winger/Natalie Cole & Jewel # Follow The Yellow Brick Road/You're Off To See The Wizard - Natalie Cole/Jewel/ Boys Choir of Harlem # If I Only Had A Brain - Jackson Browne/Jewel/Images/Ry Cooder/David Sanborn # We're Off To See The Wizard - Jewel/Jackson Browne/Ry Cooder # If I Only Had A Heart - Roger Daltrey/Female Ensemble # We're Off To See The Wizard - Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey/Ry Cooder # Lions And Tigers And Bears - Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey # If I Only Had The Nerve - Nathan Lane/Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey # We're Off To See The Wizard - Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey/Nathan Lane /Ry Cooder # If I Only Had A Brain/A Heart/The Nerve (Reprise) - Phoebe Snow/Keith Levenson/John Moller # Poppies - Debra Winger/Orchestra # You're Out Of The Woods - Natalie Cole/Dr. John/Female Ensemble # The Merry Old Land Of Oz - Joel Grey/Full Company # Surrender Dorothy - Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey/Nathan Lane/Joel Grey # If I Were King Of The Forest - Nathan Lane/Full Company # Bring Me The Broomstick - Joel Grey/Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey/Nathan Lane # Haunted Forest - Debra Winger # The Jitterbug - Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey/Nathan Lane/Full Company # March Of The Winkies - Debra Winger/Male Ensemble # Hail, Hail! The Witch Is Dead - Ronnie Spector/Dr. John/David Sanborn # We Brought You The Broomstick - Joel Grey/Jewel/Jackson Browne/Roger Daltrey/Nathan Lane # Delirious Escape - Natalie Cole # Finale (Over The Rainbow) - Full Company/Lucie Arnaz/Phoebe Snow/Ronnie Spector.. # Orchestra Finale - Orchestra Wizard of Oz in Concert